Joined
·
178 Posts
Does anyone have experience with a 307 Winchester. From what I have read this would make a great brush gun. I would like to hear from anyone that has actual experience with one.
THANKS!
THANKS!
Question on 307 Winchester
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Lindsey,
I have shot the .307 for quite awhile. I have had more one shot "Dropped in it's tracks" kills on whitetails with this cartridge than any other. Start your load work with 40.0 grains of IMR 4064 and the Speer 170 gr. flat nose .30-30 bullet. At 2300+ fps it's not the highest velocity but accurate in more than one rifle.
I have shot the .307 for quite awhile. I have had more one shot "Dropped in it's tracks" kills on whitetails with this cartridge than any other. Start your load work with 40.0 grains of IMR 4064 and the Speer 170 gr. flat nose .30-30 bullet. At 2300+ fps it's not the highest velocity but accurate in more than one rifle.
Joined
·
44 Posts
William, have you tried any of the 30-30 bullets in 150 grain? I've been shooting the Sierra 150 flat tip and it's impacting about five inches high! I was wondering if you've experienced similar results with the lighter bullet. For that reason, I've been considering the 170 grain flat tip, but in the sierrra. The other components I have been using are Winchester brass with Winchester Primers and Hodgdons 4895 powder.william iorg said:
Joined
·
204 Posts
I agree with Slim's comments 100%. While I'm sure that he has shot more deer than I with the .307 Winchester, I can report the same results as he. Of the 4 I have shot with the .307 Winchester, only one has managed to "stumble" away about 15 yards before collapsing. The rest have all "dropped in their tracks." All of my kills have been at typical woods ranges from 10 yards to 60 yards
I have used the Nosler 170 grn R/N, the Hornady 170 grn F/N, and the Speer 170 grn F/N; all with excellent results. Also, factory 180 grn F/N loads are still available and are quite accurate in my .307, although I haven't shot anything with them other than paper.
If you have a chance to pick up a .307 by all means get it. You won't be sorry as long as you stock up on brass. This is a great woods cartridge and it puts deer down in a hurry!
Hope this helps,
I have used the Nosler 170 grn R/N, the Hornady 170 grn F/N, and the Speer 170 grn F/N; all with excellent results. Also, factory 180 grn F/N loads are still available and are quite accurate in my .307, although I haven't shot anything with them other than paper.
If you have a chance to pick up a .307 by all means get it. You won't be sorry as long as you stock up on brass. This is a great woods cartridge and it puts deer down in a hurry!
Hope this helps,
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Lindsey,
I have not shot a lot of 150 grain bullets in the .307. When the factory 150's were available I shot several boxes and did not find them as accurate in my rifle as the 180 factory loads or 130 or 170 grain handloads.
The 130 grain Speer FN when loaded to the maximum listed IMR 4064 load in the Speer book is the most accurate load I have shot in the .307. I can say the same for this bullet in our two .30-30 Improveds also.
I have shot several deer with the Sierra 170 flat nose bullet. The Sierra bullet has just a little thinner jacket than the Hornady or Speer. It has always exited for me but it sheds a fair amount of lead in the wound cavity. The Speer and Hornady bullets seem to hold together just a little better. The Sierra has exactly the same accuracy potential.
Your powder search could start and stop with Hodgdon 4895. A wonderful powder that is pretty well temperature insensitive. Try Hodgon 335 if you want to try a Ball powder. Both Varget and Alliant Reloader 15 have proven very reliable with the heavier bullets.
Be careful with the .307 when working up to maximum loads. Each Winchester Big Bore seems to have just a little different maximum load potential in the .307. This is something we did not see in the .356.
Dutch, How are the wound channels with the Nosler partition? I still have some Nosler 170 grain solid base bullets saved back for the .307. I think the Nosler solid base was the best bullet for the .307, but I have not used the partitions in the .307 to take game.
I have not shot a lot of 150 grain bullets in the .307. When the factory 150's were available I shot several boxes and did not find them as accurate in my rifle as the 180 factory loads or 130 or 170 grain handloads.
The 130 grain Speer FN when loaded to the maximum listed IMR 4064 load in the Speer book is the most accurate load I have shot in the .307. I can say the same for this bullet in our two .30-30 Improveds also.
I have shot several deer with the Sierra 170 flat nose bullet. The Sierra bullet has just a little thinner jacket than the Hornady or Speer. It has always exited for me but it sheds a fair amount of lead in the wound cavity. The Speer and Hornady bullets seem to hold together just a little better. The Sierra has exactly the same accuracy potential.
Your powder search could start and stop with Hodgdon 4895. A wonderful powder that is pretty well temperature insensitive. Try Hodgon 335 if you want to try a Ball powder. Both Varget and Alliant Reloader 15 have proven very reliable with the heavier bullets.
Be careful with the .307 when working up to maximum loads. Each Winchester Big Bore seems to have just a little different maximum load potential in the .307. This is something we did not see in the .356.
Dutch, How are the wound channels with the Nosler partition? I still have some Nosler 170 grain solid base bullets saved back for the .307. I think the Nosler solid base was the best bullet for the .307, but I have not used the partitions in the .307 to take game.
Joined
·
44 Posts
I'm sorry fellas, it must have been my poor usage of the "Quote" button that caused the mixup. I'll have to work on that in the future.
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Rob, its more likely that I got lost. I am not a computer guy!
Joined
·
204 Posts
Slim-
Both of the deer I have shot with the .307 Win and the Nosler 170 Partition R/N were at about 10 yards. The "smackdown" effect was something to see. The first deer was shot broadside falling on it's side. Lungs were goo and the heart was untouched. The exit was the size of a quarter. The second deer was shot in the chest facing me and was picked up slightly and set down on his rear, where he kicked once and fell over. The deepest evidence of the bullet that I found was a hole a little bigger than a quarter in his liver, and I lost the path after that. There was no exit and I never found the bullet.
Hope this helps,
Both of the deer I have shot with the .307 Win and the Nosler 170 Partition R/N were at about 10 yards. The "smackdown" effect was something to see. The first deer was shot broadside falling on it's side. Lungs were goo and the heart was untouched. The exit was the size of a quarter. The second deer was shot in the chest facing me and was picked up slightly and set down on his rear, where he kicked once and fell over. The deepest evidence of the bullet that I found was a hole a little bigger than a quarter in his liver, and I lost the path after that. There was no exit and I never found the bullet.
Hope this helps,
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Dutch, It does!
I need to hunt with the Nosler.
This thread is not about hunting stories but... The most spectacular penetration story I have about the .307 is a shot at 30 yards into the chest of a mature whitetail. The Speer 170 grain bullet did not strike a bone and traveled the entire length of the deer. The bullet was lodged under the skin on the left ham. I still have it. The load was 40.0 grains of IMR 4064 at a little over 2300 fps. The deer dropped like it was a spine shot but thrashed its legs for a moment.
I need to hunt with the Nosler.
This thread is not about hunting stories but... The most spectacular penetration story I have about the .307 is a shot at 30 yards into the chest of a mature whitetail. The Speer 170 grain bullet did not strike a bone and traveled the entire length of the deer. The bullet was lodged under the skin on the left ham. I still have it. The load was 40.0 grains of IMR 4064 at a little over 2300 fps. The deer dropped like it was a spine shot but thrashed its legs for a moment.
Joined
·
178 Posts
Thanks one and all for sharing your wisdom. I am definitely going pick this one up and will let you know how it shoots.
THANKS!
THANKS!
Joined
·
204 Posts
Lindsey-
Great choice in the .307 Win. You won't be sorry. Just a bit of advice, Midway-USA has the brass in stock and I would suggest that you stock up a bulk lot. You never know when Winchester is going to run more .307 Winchester brass as the caliber is on the "seasonal" list.
Let us know how she shoots!
Slim-
I don't think you could go wrong with the Nosler 170 grn R/N in the .307 Win. I stopped using it because of some manuals stating that the .307 Winchester should be loaded with flat nosed bullets only; supposedly some quote from the Olin engineers who designed the round years ago. I guess I just felt more comfortable leaning on the safer side. Besides, the Hornady and Speer 170 grn F/N's did just as well for me; and they were cheaper.
Good Luck,
Great choice in the .307 Win. You won't be sorry. Just a bit of advice, Midway-USA has the brass in stock and I would suggest that you stock up a bulk lot. You never know when Winchester is going to run more .307 Winchester brass as the caliber is on the "seasonal" list.
Let us know how she shoots!
Slim-
I don't think you could go wrong with the Nosler 170 grn R/N in the .307 Win. I stopped using it because of some manuals stating that the .307 Winchester should be loaded with flat nosed bullets only; supposedly some quote from the Olin engineers who designed the round years ago. I guess I just felt more comfortable leaning on the safer side. Besides, the Hornady and Speer 170 grn F/N's did just as well for me; and they were cheaper.
Good Luck,
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Matt,
Thanks for the info.
For what it is worth. I have been shooting Remington Round nose 150's in the .307 and the .30-30 Improved without trouble. I have also shot the bulk Remington 200's and the Hornady and Sierra RN bullets intended for the .35 Remington in my .356 Winchester also. My father has done the same in his without trouble. Have you seen the article of tubular magazine "detonations" or "chain fires" in the latest copy of Gun Digest?
I certainly agree that it is a good time to stock up on brass. Both Midway and Graff & Son have done us a service by stocking it.
You can make it quite easily from .444. Use a Redding form trim die for the intermediate step.
Thanks for the info.
For what it is worth. I have been shooting Remington Round nose 150's in the .307 and the .30-30 Improved without trouble. I have also shot the bulk Remington 200's and the Hornady and Sierra RN bullets intended for the .35 Remington in my .356 Winchester also. My father has done the same in his without trouble. Have you seen the article of tubular magazine "detonations" or "chain fires" in the latest copy of Gun Digest?
I certainly agree that it is a good time to stock up on brass. Both Midway and Graff & Son have done us a service by stocking it.
You can make it quite easily from .444. Use a Redding form trim die for the intermediate step.
Joined
·
204 Posts
Slim-
No I haven't seen the article you mentioned in Gun Digest, but I will get a copy of it as soon as I can. Sounds like it should be good reading! The Nosler 170 grn R/N Partitions never gave me a problem in the .307 and my gut tells me that they are safe; I just wanted to lean on the safe side at the time.
I have tried the Sierra 200 grn R/N in my .356 Winchester just recently. I chose the Sierra R/N because the nose profile is as blunt as one can get it without calling it "flat." Also, a lot of .35 Remington shooters on the Marlin forum described it and the Hornady as being too "hard" for that caliber. So I thought it might be just right for the .356 Win. Accuracy was 1" for the last 4 shots fired at 100 yards; but I was having problems with my scope "twisting" under recoil prior to that. I was testing a batch of 50 rounds loaded with AA-2015. Worked charges up by .2 grains every two rounds and was not really trying for accuracy, just checking for pressure signs. So far, so good. Next step is to compare case head expansion to factory rounds and go from there. I know for sure at this time that the 1" group was not a fluke; this rifle will put factory 200's into 1" 3 shot groups with the first 2 shots touching every time.
Good luck with the Noslers in the .307!
No I haven't seen the article you mentioned in Gun Digest, but I will get a copy of it as soon as I can. Sounds like it should be good reading! The Nosler 170 grn R/N Partitions never gave me a problem in the .307 and my gut tells me that they are safe; I just wanted to lean on the safe side at the time.
I have tried the Sierra 200 grn R/N in my .356 Winchester just recently. I chose the Sierra R/N because the nose profile is as blunt as one can get it without calling it "flat." Also, a lot of .35 Remington shooters on the Marlin forum described it and the Hornady as being too "hard" for that caliber. So I thought it might be just right for the .356 Win. Accuracy was 1" for the last 4 shots fired at 100 yards; but I was having problems with my scope "twisting" under recoil prior to that. I was testing a batch of 50 rounds loaded with AA-2015. Worked charges up by .2 grains every two rounds and was not really trying for accuracy, just checking for pressure signs. So far, so good. Next step is to compare case head expansion to factory rounds and go from there. I know for sure at this time that the 1" group was not a fluke; this rifle will put factory 200's into 1" 3 shot groups with the first 2 shots touching every time.
Good luck with the Noslers in the .307!
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
Matt, We should probably change the topic to .356!
I agree the Sierra and Hornady are ideal for the .356. My experiance with the Speer 220 flat nose was that it was accurate but the jacket was too strong for our little white tail deer. They would just begin to open up as they exited. With the 200 grain Sierra and Hornady there was much better expansion on these light frame critters, and the bulets still exited. Dont overlook the bulk Remington 200 grainer round nose bullets. They will open your groups up about 3/4" but still have good hunting accuracy and they make great off season paractice bullets. They perform well at .356 velocities in my experiance.
We use rosin, just a wipe with the finger on the inside of our scope rings. The Redding style rings and mounts do not hold up under heavy recoil in our experiance. My Timber rifle and my Dads .358 M-99 will kick the rings right out of the mounts. It is surprising how well the Weaver rings and bases withstand recoil. they are not pretty but the scopes do not move. We have now settled on Weaver mounts and Millett Angle Lok rings for the heavy kickers. You would not think by looking at them that the Millett rings would hold up to heavy recoil but they do.
I agree the Sierra and Hornady are ideal for the .356. My experiance with the Speer 220 flat nose was that it was accurate but the jacket was too strong for our little white tail deer. They would just begin to open up as they exited. With the 200 grain Sierra and Hornady there was much better expansion on these light frame critters, and the bulets still exited. Dont overlook the bulk Remington 200 grainer round nose bullets. They will open your groups up about 3/4" but still have good hunting accuracy and they make great off season paractice bullets. They perform well at .356 velocities in my experiance.
We use rosin, just a wipe with the finger on the inside of our scope rings. The Redding style rings and mounts do not hold up under heavy recoil in our experiance. My Timber rifle and my Dads .358 M-99 will kick the rings right out of the mounts. It is surprising how well the Weaver rings and bases withstand recoil. they are not pretty but the scopes do not move. We have now settled on Weaver mounts and Millett Angle Lok rings for the heavy kickers. You would not think by looking at them that the Millett rings would hold up to heavy recoil but they do.
Joined
·
204 Posts
Slim-
Thanks for the tip about using the Rosin. The mounts/rings are Williams Gunsight Companies one piece "Streamline" mounts. Since I live about ten miles from their facility I think I will just take my .356 in and have them correct the problem. They usually take good care of us locals who buy their products.
One thing is for sure, this .356 really likes the Sierra 200 R/N; and I'll be trying to take one of our hearty Michigan Whitetail bucks this fall with that bullet. I think when I am done working up a load with the Sierra bullet I'll be giving Marshall's 210 grn LFNGC a try.
Your right about hijacking this post. Maybe we should have started another thread. My apologies to Lindsey Mathiso. I know how frustrating it can be when somebody else takes over a thread and talks about something else.
Thanks for the tip about using the Rosin. The mounts/rings are Williams Gunsight Companies one piece "Streamline" mounts. Since I live about ten miles from their facility I think I will just take my .356 in and have them correct the problem. They usually take good care of us locals who buy their products.
One thing is for sure, this .356 really likes the Sierra 200 R/N; and I'll be trying to take one of our hearty Michigan Whitetail bucks this fall with that bullet. I think when I am done working up a load with the Sierra bullet I'll be giving Marshall's 210 grn LFNGC a try.
Your right about hijacking this post. Maybe we should have started another thread. My apologies to Lindsey Mathiso. I know how frustrating it can be when somebody else takes over a thread and talks about something else.
Joined
·
518 Posts
I see that there is a .307 Winchester for sale on Guns America - $475, is that about right? And the production year was 1992? What a nice caliber - too bad Marlin or Rossi/Taurus didn't come up with a .308 lever. I would be tempted. Maybe. Heck, I am allways tempted! I just need to stick to one desire - the .45 for now.
Joined
·
6,660 Posts
I have no idea what they are worth. I buy high and sell low! I have a no safety .307 and a safety .356. I would pay a slight premium for a no safety model.
307 Winchester
I have hunted for years with the 307win.First with the factory 150s at 2625fps and 180s at 2445fps.Don't pay any attention to the factory ballistics.they are quoted for 24in and you will only have a 20in.So the shorter barrel will shave off around 100fps or so. I use for handloads 130gr Speer 43.0grs of H4895 for 2710fps,or 150gr Hornady 42.0grs of H4895 for 2625fps.I much prefer the round nosed 180gr 308win bullets over the flat nosed 170gr 30/30 bullets.Why you ask simple they are better suited to 307wins velocity.The 30/30 bullets are made for the lazy velocity of the 30/30.While the 308Wins are made for the quicker 308win velocities,which are more on par with 307wins velocity.Good day. Enforcer
I have hunted for years with the 307win.First with the factory 150s at 2625fps and 180s at 2445fps.Don't pay any attention to the factory ballistics.they are quoted for 24in and you will only have a 20in.So the shorter barrel will shave off around 100fps or so. I use for handloads 130gr Speer 43.0grs of H4895 for 2710fps,or 150gr Hornady 42.0grs of H4895 for 2625fps.I much prefer the round nosed 180gr 308win bullets over the flat nosed 170gr 30/30 bullets.Why you ask simple they are better suited to 307wins velocity.The 30/30 bullets are made for the lazy velocity of the 30/30.While the 308Wins are made for the quicker 308win velocities,which are more on par with 307wins velocity.Good day. Enforcer
Joined
·
178 Posts
Kudos to Winchester. The gun is "new, in the original box", thus never fired. The gun store noticed there was a crack in the stock, a factory defect. Winchester has agreed to replace the stock under warranty as they agree that the gun was delivered to the original owner. In this day of scams and rip=off's, it's nice to see a large company take their service and customer satisfaction seriously. I will buy the gun when it's returned.
My hat is off to the folks at Winchester!
And thanks for the thoughts, this sounds like a gem of a gun.
My hat is off to the folks at Winchester!
And thanks for the thoughts, this sounds like a gem of a gun.
1 - 20 of 25 Posts
Join the discussion
Join now to ask and comment!